This industry is the lifeblood of the area, and almost no household is exempt. When demand soars during such events as the Sinhala and the Tamil new year, or during the election season, villagers will churn out hundreds of thousands of fireworks.
4) King Dasharatha, Rama's father, decides it is time to give his throne tohis eldest son Rama and retire to the forest to seek moksha. Everyone seemspleased. This plan fulfills the rules of dharma because an eldest son shouldrule and, if a son can take over one's responsibilities, one's last years maybe spent in a search for moksha. In addition, everyone loves Rama. HoweverRama's step-mother, the king's second wife, is not pleased. She wants her son,Bharata, to rule. Because of an oath Dasharatha had made to her years before,she gets the king to agree to banish Rama for fourteen years and to crownBharata, even though the king, on bended knee, begs her not to demand suchthings. Broken-hearted, the devastated king cannot face Rama with the news andKaikeyi must tell him.
"The best thing about it is the time I save," says Ms Nandawathie. "Cooking rice over firewood took 15 minutes. With the gas it takes just five minutes. And I don't have to spend the time each morning gathering firewood." It has freed up precious time to spend with her eight-year-old son, Sathsara, and her four-year-old daughter, Himanchi.
Ms Nandawathie and her husband, V G Padmasiri, lead a precarious financial existence. Mr Padmasiri used to work in a concrete factory, but when the workforce was cut he and his wife set up their own family business. In the monsoon, they farm their small patch of land. That brings in about $50 (28) a month. In the dry season, they make bricks, which they sell locally, making about $90 a month.
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